Economic pulse: Chief financial officers across the country have turned bearish about the economy’s prospects and those of their own companies, according to a new survey from Deloitte. Political concerns, both at home and abroad, were cited as the biggest external factors, while talent shortages were named as the biggest internal risk.

Some 83 percent of CFOs also thought that U.S. equities were overvalued, the highest response Deloitte has ever had to that question.

Care grant: Hofstra’s Center for Entrepreneurship has been awarded almost $500,000 to launch an entrepreneurship challenge in community healthcare. The program is aimed at inspiring entrepreneurs to develop real-world solutions to community health problems in underserved communities in the NYC metro region, with funding from the U.S. Economic Development Administration.

The School of Health Professions and Human Services, the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and Northwell Ventures are partners.

Also:Billboard magazine has named Hofstra one of the country’s best music business schools, for the second year running. Billboard made special note of the Center for Entrepreneurship’s new student-run record label, Mane Records, which offers students real-life experience recording, producing, promoting and distributing music.

And: IzzeYe, Mane Records’ first signed artist, will be performing at the school’s Fall Fest, which is headlined this year by Lil Wayne, Bad Mary and several other artists equally unfamiliar to the Innovate editorial leadership.

Still big: Northwell Health tops the list of Crain’s largest private employers, again. Northwell turnover is 8 percent; the average employee stays nine years.

Avanti Biosciences: Gian Luca Araldi, a onetime senior director of Forest Labs, is gunning for the enzymes that trigger Alzheimer’s, Down syndrome and other neurodegenerative conditions. And he’s got a $2 million SBIR grant to help him do it.

Super attorneys: 14 Sahn Ward Coschignano attorneys have been named to the New York Metro Super Lawyers/Rising Stars lists, or three quarters of the firm. At Farrell Fritz, 31 attorneys received the distinction, including James Wicks, who cracked the Top 100 for the fourth straight year.

Oops: An item in Wednesday’s newsletter suggested the Island’s unemployment rate is highest in Lindenhurt. Might be Freudian. Please add your own s.

About our sponsor:The Law Offices of Andrew Presberg is Long Island’s premier “IDA attorney” for businesses relocating, expanding and growing on Long Island. Founded in 1984, the practice also focuses on the purchase, sale, leasing and financing of commercial and industrial property, SBA loan transactions, construction, commercial banking and real estate litigation.

Doubling down: A 2013 winner of Buffalo’s 43North business plan competition is being acquired by a British investment company in a deal worth nearly $11 million.

Hemogenyx, a New York City company that is developing new types of treatments for patients with blood diseases, is being acquired by Silver Falcon Plc. Shareholders are due to approve the deal on Oct. 4.

43North, which receives a 5 percent stake in all contest winners, would be in line for a $540,000 payout, or more than double the original $250,000 prize money awarded.

Why don’t we do this here?

Prime real estate: Amazon has cut a deal to add additional office space in NYC, this on the heels of a mega-distribution facility on State Island and a food center in Bethpage. Is the world’s largest retailer thinking about plunking its ballyhooed second HQ in the middle of all that, or are they merely tossing bones?

Strength in numbers: The members of the United States Climate Alliance – now 14 states including New York, plus Puerto Rico although things may have changed recently with that – are collectively on track to meet their portion of U.S. commitments under the Paris Agreement.

Build a Wegmans: There’s a hole in the heart of Albany and no clear plans to fill it.

Take that, Blue Apron: The Albertsons supermarket chain has agreed to buy meal kit start up Plated for around $200 million, joining the kill-the-supermarket home delivery fray.

Add to your keychain: YubiKey, a $50 thumb drive-like dongle that authenticates a user and is as simple to use as plugging a keyboard into a computer, may be the answer to our hacking fears. Created by Stina Ehrensvard, the gadget is the de facto security device for companies in 160 countries and loved by Facebook, Dropbox and Salesforce.

BELOW THE FOLD

Head case: Designer Carlos Ferrando wants to “give conventional products new meanings” and has designed a folding bike helmet that looks good and still shields your brain.

Brave new world: The end of capitalism is already starting if you know where to look, and one of America’s foremost Marxist economists has never felt so optimistic in his 50-year career.

To Do List: 20 ways to get organized before winter. (Get two of No. 14.)

Missed the boat on sponsoring? Climb aboard. We need your support to keep this baby going.